The preparation of a beverage by a capsule containing beverage ingredients is known. In general, the capsule is inserted in a beverage production device, such as a coffee machine, liquid is fed in the capsule, the liquid interacts with the beverage ingredients and a beverage is extracted from the capsule under pressure or by gravity.
The preparation of a beverage by using the centrifugation is known. The principle mainly consists in providing beverage ingredients in a container of the capsule, feeding liquid in the receptacle and rotating the receptacle at elevated speed to ensure interaction of liquid with ingredients while creating a gradient of pressure of liquid in the receptacle; such pressure increasing gradually from the centre towards the periphery of the receptacle. As liquid traverses the ingredients, e.g., ground coffee, the extraction of the beverage compounds takes place and a liquid extract is obtained that flows out at the periphery of the receptacle.
The term “capsule” refers in general to any flexible, rigid or semi-rigid packaging container containing beverage ingredients. Other synonyms to a capsule are: “pod”, “pad”, “cartridge” or “sachet”. The capsule can be designed for a single use. The container can also be filled with ingredients by the user to form the capsule just before use.
The term “ingredients” means any suitable beverage substance such as ground coffee, soluble coffee, leaf tea, soluble tea, herbal tea, dairy powder, culinary powder, baby food, other beverage nutritional ingredients and any combinations thereof.
A capsule system and method for preparing a beverage from a capsule using centrifugation forces is described in the following documents: EP2210539, WO2008/148604, WO2008148650, WO2008/148646, WO2008/148656 and WO2010/026045.
It is known to use a capsule in a beverage brewing device using centrifugation wherein a closure wall of the capsule is removed or perforated for enabling insertion of a liquid injection means and/or beverage extracting means.
In particular, in the international patent application WO2008/148646, a capsule intended for being used in a centrifugation device is described which has a body with a cavity, a lid closing the cavity and a flange; such flange being engaged by a valve means of the beverage production device. The lid has openings or pores at its periphery for enabling the flow of centrifuged beverage to leave the cavity. The flow then passes on the upper surface of the flange and between the valve means when a passage is created by a relative movement between the valve means and the flange of the capsule. In the international patent application WO2010/066705, a capsule is also intended for being used in a centrifugation device. The capsule comprises a flange with an annular raising portion forming a restriction for the centrifuged liquid flow path when said portion is engaged by a pressing surface of the beverage production device.
Therefore, the flow and the pressure created in the capsule highly depend on the characteristics of the valve means and the shape and dimensions of the flange.